It's A Hell Of A Town
by funkfactory
Summary: Laura Powers has moved back to Springfield to start a life of her own. Springfield hasn't changed, but has she?
1. Chapter 1

Springfield.

Spend a couple years in Detroit and Springfield actually starts looking kind of good, she mused to herself, a small smile forming on her lips. Lips that had aged a few summers since she was last here. Lips that had grown hungry.

She sat down the two boxes, stacked on top of each other, beside the door after she passed through it and she lifted her eyes to look around. A hand on her back as she cracked her spine a little, sniffing the dust that danced through the air. Just as she stretched out her arm to push closed the door behind her, the ringtone of her cellphone broke the silence.

She sighed good-naturedly. "Hey, mom."

"Did you get there safely? Cause if you totalled the car..."

"No, mom."

"No, _what_?"

She laughed a little, walking over to the kitchen counter and hopped up on it. "The car is fine and so am I. Would you relax?"

"Ah well, I would've just billed your father anyway." Laughter. Mom must have started smoking again. "So you're really sure about this?"

"Yes, mom, I'm sure. It'll be a breeze. I mean, honestly, it's not like this place has a very high standard. Anyone can get a job anywhere. It hasn't really changed much in that aspect."

Her mom made a skeptical sound, but she kept her comments to herself. "Okay. Well, check in with me once you've gotten your contract in order? We can review it together, make it a video conference and maybe a movie?"

"_Mom_."

"Alright, alright, okay, I get it, I guess that was too far. But I'm serious about reviewing your contract. I don't want you to get screwed."

She laughed again. "I'll call you tonight. Bye!"

The women hung up and after leaving her phone on the counter, she went over to the door to get the boxes again. Just before straightening up, from behind her hair, she spotted a pair of shoes. Her gaze drifted up a pair of legs and once she was at full height, she was face to face with a familiar sight.

"Jimbo..."

"Laura."

A pause. A somewhat awkward pause. A pause Jimbo was the first to break.

"I saw you were back." His hands were clenching in his pockets. It wasn't hard to tell.

"How? I've been back like, barely an hour. Are you stalking me?" Laura looked somewhere between disturbed and annoyed.

Jimbo's forehead scrunched up defensively. "I was uh, outside the train station, with Dolph. I saw you get off. I wasn't stalkin' ya or anything. It was like, uh, a total coincidence, like... really."

Laura supposed she had no reason not to buy his story, after all, it wasn't a surprise that Jimbo and his gang of goons hung out in places like that. She stepped aside and allowed him into her apartment. "You can come in, but not for long. I have a job interview in about an hour."

The boy looked surprised, in the good kind of way. "Really? Where?"

Laura made a face, unwilling to tell him, or anyone, just yet. Good thing her back was turned against him. "Not important. Do you want something to drink?"

"Yeah." Pause. "I thought you were in college?"

"Nah. Wasn't for me. Dropped out."

"Like, how come?"

She shrugged nonchalantly. "Not like I'm gonna tell _you_," she told him as she handed him a can of soda. Jimbo seemed to accept her reluctance but the silence crept over them once more. Laura leaned against the kitchen counter, watching her old boyfriend idly as he opened the can and drank. He looked up and their eyes met briefly. Jimbo swallowed visibly.

"Wasn't your shirt buttoned up before?"

_God_, he was so _dumb_, bless his soul, thought Laura with an eye roll. But damn, the dim ones were such a turn on. Laura tipped her head back, inviting him to walk closer. He wordlessly complied and it took only a small tug from Laura before their pelvises met and Laura's legs were around his waist. Her hands were already pulling Jimbo's t-shirt over his head and once he was shirtless, Laura pulled him flush against herself and kissed him messily, which he sloppily responded.


	2. Chapter 2

"Nice belt." Her voice wasn't completely sincere. In fact it sounded sarcastic. Sarcastic and rude.

Jimbo snatched the belt from between Laura's fingers, looping it into his jeans, eyes angry but mouth silent. One of these days, people would have to stop treating him this way. Like a low-ranking human being.

"Why are you so cranky? I just let you get to third base with me. Wait, let me guess, you're late for work? Where's that? _Krusty Burger_?" Laura chuckled as she slid off the kitchen counter and padded toward the fridge. Jimbo cursed under his breath when he glanced at her and saw she was still mostly naked, save for her unbuttoned shirt hanging loosely on her.

When no reply came from Jimbo, unsurprisingly, Laura turned around and leaned against the fridge, holding a bag of grapes. Her next remark was stopped before it even started by Laura's phone ringing and she walked over, positioning herself between Jimbo and the phone as she answered the call.

"Laura."

"Miss Powers? This is Belle."

Laura nearly choked on a grape and she grabbed her shorts and rushed to the other side of the apartment, slightly huddled. "Ah! Belle. Hey. What can I do for you?"

"We spoke two weeks ago about you coming here to work for me? I've had to re-arrange some things and you're on tonight."

"Tonight? Um, yeah okay, sure! That sounds good. I'll be there, no problem!" She let out a small grunt as she stepped into her shorts, trying to re-dress herself one-handedly.

"Alright, we'll see you then. You start at 10. Be here by 9." Click.

Laura tossed her phone onto the couch and could finally use both hands to button her denim shorts. She looked over at Jimbo, wondering if he'd heard anything, but he seemed uninterested. Or maybe that was just his usual vacant expression. "Were you eavesdropping?" she asked him, straight out.

"No," he stammered. "I was stealing your grapes." He swallowed what was in his mouth. "They're good."

"Keep them." She said shortly and came back to the kitchen, fumbling with the buttons of her shirt as she was walking at the same time. When she was within reach, Jimbo wordlessly offered to help her with the buttons, but was rejected by having his hands shoved away. "Look, I gotta go soon and I don't know what you think this was, but I think I can safely confirm that it's not."

He looked at her, almost incredulously, which was a stretch when it came to his range of expressions. "I wasn't thinkin' anything," he started, before he was interrupted by a quick chuckle from Laura.

"Figures you weren't. Look," she paused and grabbed a pen from her messenger bag by the kitchen counter and she took hold of Jimbo's hand. "Here's my number. Save it on your phone, but don't use my name. Don't worry about me, I'll find yours on my own and I'll call you some time. Don't call me first. Seriously. _Don't_. I'll call _you_." She scribbled her number on his hand and glanced up to meet his eyes.

Jimbo nodded. "Got it." It wasn't a great deal, but then again, getting to keep secrets from his friends could prove fun. Before he knew it, Laura was pushing him out of the apartment and he was left in the corridor, holding the bag of grapes. He looked at the penned number on his hand, then at Laura's door, then he smiled a little to himself before he started down the hall.


End file.
